The Skinny on Short Shorts

Sun’s out, guns out. Sky’s out … thighs out?

With temperatures rising, it appears that so are the hemlines on shorts. While Daisy Dukes may be nothing new, we are just getting acquainted with “Chubbies,” and I am not talking about what lies beneath.

If you’ve walked around Cap Hill lately, you’re sure to have seen men donning this new type of super short shorts; Chubbies is a brand that sells men’s shorts with only a specific five-and-a-half inch inseam.

These shorts may have been popular in some of our favorite 80s movies, but the past few decades have been dedicated to cargos, surfer shorts, and even denim JNCO jeans that men let hang down their waist. So why the sudden blast from the past?

My best friend Jose is absolutely thrilled that short shorts are “making a comeback” in modern-day society. As soon as the temperatures rose above 60 degrees, he slipped on a pair of Sperry’s and his favorite red, white, and blue Chubbies to celebrate the soon-to-be summer weather. (As a matter of fact, I ordered Jose a pair of “Mile Thighs” Chubbies — short shorts with the Colorado flag on them — for his birthday more than a month ago. The fact that they have yet to ship from the Chubbies factory in San Francisco speaks to the overwhelming growing popularity of the short shorts.)

When I asked Jose’s opinion on the evolution of short shorts — from the Adidas soccer shorts of the 70s to the cargo shorts Jason Biggs sported in American Pie to now — he spoke a lot about the shift in masculinity as associated with men’s shorts.

“In the early 70s, it was not uncommon to see a man wearing short shorts,” Jose said. “At some point there was a shift where men wanted to appear more masculine and short shorts just did not fit into that. This newer generation of men, my generation, both gay and straight men, are more secure in their masculinity and are okay with exposing a little more skin.”

A recent Wall Street Journal article about men wearing short shorts also spoke of men being more comfortable with their bodies and their masculinity. In the article, Chubbies chief designer and founder Rainer Castillo said the reason for creating Chubbies was because he felt that they “spend too much time in the gym to hide under frumpy shorts.”

The goal of Chubbies, according to Castillo, is to literally “bridge the gap between long cargo shorts and fussy, high-end designer short shorts.”

“I think there’s been a resurgence in men wanting to stay up to date on what’s hot for summer,” Jose added. “It just so happens that short shorts are making a comeback and I don’t see it slowing down anytime soon.”

So there you have it, ladies and gents, short shorts might be here to stay. Until the next big fashion trend — or at least until the temperatures drop — we will all be getting up close and personal with some man thighs.